Texas court takes important step to protect women's rights

October 31, 2013

On Monday a federal judge in Texas struck down parts of a restrictive Texas law—the same law that state senator Wendy Davis filibustered against for more than 11 hours in an attempt to stop its passage.

Judge Lee Yeakel struck down part of the law that would shut down a number of clinics in Texas and limited thousands of women's access to reproductive health care.

"Today's ruling marks an important victory for Texas women and sends a clear message to lawmakers: it is unconstitutional for politicians to pass laws that take personal, private decisions away from women and their doctors," said Cecile Richards, president of Planned Parenthood.

But the court ruling was only one step in the right direction. The rest of the law remains, restricting women's access to non-surgical abortions and to termination after 20 weeks of pregnancy. That is unacceptable. Our work is not done—both in Texas, and in many states around the country. Commit to stand with women today.